Tesla included into Chinese government purchase list

Tesla Inc has been included into a government procurement list of East China's Jiangsu province, which marked the United States electric vehicle giant's first time entry into a local government purchasing list in China.

The move came at a time when Tesla proposed to test its robotaxi and vowed closer ties with the country, as China Daily first reported. Earlier media reports said that Tesla also wanted to remove its restrictions in some data sensitive areas like government agencies.

According to a procurement list of Jiangsu government for 2024 and 2025, local government authorities, public institutions and organizations could purchase a diverse range of new energy vehicles that include Tesla's Model Y.

The latest batch of shortlisted vehicles also features other domestic models including the Wenjie M7, Avatr 11 and Deep Blue SL03.

Data from the Ministry of Finance showed that China's government procurement hit about 3.5 trillion yuan ($492.96 billion) in 2022.